ERC Consolidator Grant, recent awardees

2027

• Computational Neuroscience-based Interventions for OCD

  EBERHARD KARLS UNIVERSITAET TUEBINGEN · DE · €1,999,903

  Mental ill-health is one of the biggest challenges for today’s society. Mental disorders are widespread and pervasive, yet our traditional approach to treating patients is archaic, ignoring clinical heterogeneity and their neurobiological causes. Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a paradigmatic case, where – despite its pervasiveness – many treatments have been discovered serendipitously, where the gold-standard treatments have not changed substantially for decades despite their modest effe

• How do cells absorb nutrients: Spatially resolving nutrient uptake using intestinal cells as a paradigm

  HELSINGIN YLIOPISTO · FI · €1,989,207

  Cells need a constant supply of nutrients to maintain homeostasis, integrity and identity. In multicellular organisms, cells of different types tightly control this chemical exchange with their environment depending on metabolic requirements. While intracellular metabolic and nutrient-sensing pathways are widely studied, our understanding of how cells regulate their nutrient uptake in the first place remains largely unexplored. Nutrient uptake occurs at the cellular membranes via transporter pro

• The epigenetic cost and benefit balance of giant virus endogenizations

  QUEEN MARY UNIVERSITY OF LONDON · UK · €1,999,997

  Giant viruses, renowned for their exceptionally large genomes with thousands of genes, are increasingly being identified as integrated elements within eukaryotic genomes. This seemingly paradoxical process of endogenization is significant, as it represents a pathway for large-scale lateral gene transfer in eukaryotes. However, the initial integration of viral DNA can impose severe evolutionary costs, potentially being lethal for the host. The overarching hypothesis of this proposal is that the g

• Nonequilibrium Quantum Matter beyond Unitary Dynamics

  INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AUSTRIA · AT · €1,999,492

  The field of quantum simulation holds immense promise for exploring new physical phenomena, however unlocking its full potential requires a paradigm shift. Modern quantum simulators naturally allow to measure a broad class of multi-body correlation functions for which we are lacking adequate theory, and operate in an uncharted regime where the system is subject to intrinsic unitary dynamics and driving, as well as nonunitary dynamics such as dissipation, projective or weak measurements, and feed

• Targeting airway lymphocytes in asthma and biologics treatment

  KAROLINSKA INSTITUTET · SE · €1,999,008

  The development of biologics targeting cytokines involved in type 2 lymphocyte function and activation offers new hope for more than 16 million patients living with severe asthma, but not all patients respond, and none are cured. This calls for increased understanding of airway tissue type 2 lymphocytes and how they are regulated by novel biologics in severe asthma. I discovered human innate lymphoid cells type 2 (ILC2), and have shown how they, in addition to T helper 2 (Th2) cells, orchestrate

• Supermassive Black Hole Transients: From Single Brush Strokes to the Entire Painting

  TEL AVIV UNIVERSITY · IL · €2,053,750

  In the past decade, a plethora of transients in galaxy centers has been discovered and their study has become a flourishing field of research. Many of these so-called “nuclear transients” (given their position in the nuclei of galaxies) are interpreted as tidal disruption events (TDEs) around supermassive black holes (SMBHs) and are used to study accretion physics, galaxy dynamics, SMBH growth and environments, stellar populations in galactic nuclei and more. However, important puzzles surroundi

• Foundations of Weakly Consistent Objects for Shared-Memory Programming

  TEL AVIV UNIVERSITY · IL · €2,000,000

  Despite being intuitive, strong consistency necessitates frequent global coordination, significantly limiting the scalability of concurrent systems. In shared-memory programming, the need to relax the consistency guarantees has long been recognized, spurring extensive research and driving the adoption of weak memory models in programming languages. However, the situation is markedly different at the level of concurrent objects. For objects---designed to provide common functionalities to clients

• Language in Balance: an Imprint of Brain Electrophysiology?

  MAX-PLANCK-GESELLSCHAFT ZUR FORDERUNG DER WISSENSCHAFTEN EV · DE · €1,994,918

  It has long been recognised that the brain functions in a neural balance of periodic and aperiodic activity. The significance of this is a matter of intense debate. It seems clear that such a fundamental neural balance would manifest as other forms of balance—in cognition and behaviour.BALANG pursues this idea for human language. Here, balance is described for both information and acoustics. We don’t like to hear the same old story, but being completely caught off guard isn’t pleasant either. Si

• The role of memory in perception: neural mechanisms and computations

  UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON · UK · €1,999,444

  Perception and memory are intimately linked, yet they are traditionally studied separately, with knowledge gained in one field not significantly impacting the other. Here, I propose to investigate if and how a canonical memory region, the hippocampus, influences perception. Specifically, I hypothesise that the hippocampus generates predictions based on multisensory associations in our environment (e.g. a barking sound predicts that you will see your dog), and sends these predictions to visual co

• Integrative Analysis of Cellular Drivers of Color Diversification in Development and Evolution

  HELSINGIN YLIOPISTO · FI · €2,000,000

  During development, tissues are formed by the assembly of different cell types. Evolutionary changes in tissue phenotypes can be the result of mutations that alter the cell type composition or the cell types and their inherent properties. Although these are clear mechanistic links between development and evolution, most research has focused on the endpoints of the genotype-phenotype map, treating the cellular mechanisms that bridge genotype and phenotype as a black box. How changes in cell types

• Fluctuations-driven Light and Acoustic Scattering mitigation for High-resolution imaging in dynamic environments

  THE HEBREW UNIVERSITY OF JERUSALEM · IL · €1,999,850

  Optical imaging systems are central to modern life, from smartphones and autonomous vehicles to laser-based microscopes in biomedical investigations and clinical diagnostics. Yet, even the most advanced imaging systems are severely limited by random scattering of light in dynamic environments, from live tissues to rapidly varying fog. Recent breakthroughs in computational scattering compensation, including my own works, have allowed an unprecedented leap in capabilities: it is now possible to re

• Robustness of morphogenesis via noise and mechano-chemical feedbacks

  INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AUSTRIA · AT · €1,999,175

  Development involves increasingly intricate processes of physical tissue sculpting (morphogenesis), resulting in highly reproducible shapes. The apparent paradox between reproducibility at macroscopic scales, and emerging evidence of extensive heterogeneity and stochasticity at the molecular and cellular scales, suggests that active mechanisms are necessary to ensure morphogenetic robustness. However, as biomechanical theories of morphogenesis have largely ignored the presence and many facets of

• Error Correcting Codes for Interactive Channels

  BEN-GURION UNIVERSITY OF THE NEGEV · IL · €2,000,000

  Error Correcting Codes (ECCs) address a fundamental question: how can we ensure reliable data transmission over unreliable channels? Since Shannon’s pioneering 1948 work, seven decades of research have created a rich theoretical framework with practical impacts across diverse fields.Today, communication systems are no longer just about transmitting information. Instead, they often involve interactive processes requiring multiple exchanges between participants, as seen in cloud computing, cryptog

• Synergistic treatment of solid tumours by engineering novel synthetic communication systems in T cells and Macrophages

  FONDAZIONE ISTITUTO ITALIANO DI TECNOLOGIA · IT · €2,437,500

  In TeaM I propose a synthetic biology-based multi-cellular strategy to fight solid tumors, addressing the immunosuppressive tumour microenvironment (TME). WHY: Synthetic biology is transforming cell-based immunotherapies with control circuits in immune cells like T cells and macrophages. However, in solid tumours the TME renders these cells dysfunctional, limiting their efficacy. Innovative solutions are needed to address this unmet need and unlock the full potential of immunotherapies.WHAT: Tea

• The evolution of biological hydrogen oxidation as a key mechanism to prevent planetary water loss

  UNIVERSITA DEGLI STUDI DI NAPOLI FEDERICO II · IT · €2,996,250

  Water is essential to planetary habitability, and Earth’s long-term water stability depends on mechanisms preventing hydrogen escape to space. Hydrogen on Earth is continually produced through geological and biological processes. While hydrogen production from water photolysis in the upper atmosphere is largely prevented by Earth’s magnetic field and atmospheric cold traps, hydrogen generated in the crust or near the planetary surface would escape to space unless oxidation processes act on it qu

• Functional Coding of Neuropeptide Signaling Networks in Learning

  KATHOLIEKE UNIVERSITEIT LEUVEN · BE · €2,167,296

  Humanity has always been intrigued by the brain’s ceaseless capacity to learn and store experiences. However, the ability to acquire and retrieve learned information is dynamic and regulated by a bewildering variety of chemical messengers. Neuropeptides form the largest and most diverse group of neuromodulators and play important roles in learning. Growing evidence exists showing that they form dense signaling networks, with most neurons expressing many neuropeptides and receptors, but how this

• Frontier Cats: Reimagining Multispecies Governance and Care Ethics beyond Post-politics

  AGENCIA ESTATAL CONSEJO SUPERIOR DE INVESTIGACIONES CIENTIFICAS · ES · €1,999,668

  As we face the sixth mass extinction and unprecedented socio-ecological challenges, cats—both cherished companions and devastating predators—stand at the center of escalating tensions between biodiversity conservation and animal welfare. Existing governance models, reliant on technocratic, post-political, and expert-driven solutions, fail to capture the cultural, ethical, and emotional dimensions of socio-ecological cat-related conflicts, leaving unreconciled divergent knowledges, values, and pr

• From short to long time scales: Resonances and Structure in Computation

  SORBONNE UNIVERSITE · FR · €1,689,375

  Symmetries, energy and mass conservation, integrability, measure invariance, scattering, etc. are major features in nonlinear systems and intrinsically shape their global dynamics. To guarantee a reliable numerical description of nonlinear phenomena on short and long time scales, faithful to the physical interpretation of differential equations, it is therefore crucial to preserve these structures at the discrete level. Otherwise important information becomes lost, hindering genuine long time si

• Literary reading, public libraries, young people, and inclusive democracies

  UNIVERSIDAD POMPEU FABRA · ES · €1,999,821

  OPENLIB inquires into the claim that literary reading fosters more inclusive democracies by focusing on the shifting relationships between young people, cultural materials, and public libraries. The proposed project brings together the long-held question about the uses of literature and arts with the demand for libraries to ensure a pluralistic public sphere in times of increased digitalization. This project assumes that the question of how literary reading contributes to more inclusive democrac

• Unified framework for modelling progressive to catastrophic failure in fractured media

  UPPSALA UNIVERSITET · SE · €2,000,000

  Climate change, characterised by rising temperatures, extreme rainfall, permafrost thaw, and sea level rise, poses great new challenges for mitigating extreme geohazards like mountain collapses, glacier breakoffs, and volcanic eruptions. Many of these extreme events are due to catastrophic failure in fractured media. There is a fundamental and urgent need to reliably predict these catastrophes and minimise their consequences. Extensive evidence indicates that geomaterials commonly incubate progr

• Organocatalytic Coordination Microenvironment Design

  BEN-GURION UNIVERSITY OF THE NEGEV · IL · €2,999,998

  An overlooked aspect in organocatalyst design relates to nature’s ability to produce a multitude of biochemical products using only a limited number of mechanisms and building blocks. Rather than relying on structural modifications of the catalytically active unit, enzymatic structures primarily vary throughout the coordination microenvironment in which the active unit is embedded. This evolutionary structural principle boosts the number of compounds and reactions that can be efficiently realize

• Concepts as Knowledge Facilitators

  HELSINGIN YLIOPISTO · FI · €1,999,985

  Concepts are crucial from an epistemic perspective. Having the right concepts allows asking the right questions, formulating new hypotheses, and providing good explanations. Good concepts are projectable in inductive reasoning. While the ability of concepts to aid and obstruct our thinking has been a recurring theme throughout the history of philosophy, discussions of concepts have little place in current epistemological debates. For instance, existing formal models and informal pictures of upda

• Proof complexity of circuit lower bounds

  THE CHANCELLOR, MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD · UK · €1,999,843

  One of the most fundamental and notorious open problems in theoretical computer science is the possible existence of highly efficient algorithms solving NP problems: there might be fast algorithms breaking established cryptosystems, automating theorem proving, making contemporary approaches to AI obsolete, and solving practically every computational task. This issue lies at the heart of the P versus NP problem, a central question of computational complexity, and particularly in the investigation

• Mitochondrial Synthesis of Neurotransmitters in Synaptic Function and Memory

  AGENCIA ESTATAL CONSEJO SUPERIOR DE INVESTIGACIONES CIENTIFICAS · ES · €2,000,000

  Released neurotransmitters must be replenished at extraordinarily fast time scales to support synaptic function, circuit physiology and behavior. However, how axonal metabolism responds to the demands of neuronal activity to preserve neurotransmitter levels remains poorly understood. While our understanding of the biochemical pathways for neurotransmitter synthesis is vastly detailed, very little is known about how these pathways are implemented in mammalian axons to preserve synaptic function a

• Operando Probing of Electrochemical Reactions At Triple-phase-boundaries

  THE CHANCELLOR, MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD · UK · €2,323,800

  Electrochemical conversion is central to the net-zero transition, enabling hydrogen production from renewable energy and water, and the transformation of waste CO2 into valuable fuels and chemicals. However, these multi-step reactions take place at triple-phase boundaries which are challenging to experimentally access, limiting our understanding and thus ability to rationally design improved electrocatalysts. OPERATE will deliver new capabilities to observe the chemical state, intermediate speci

• Muslim-Jewish Bridges: the Endurance of Iberian Heritage in the Modern Maghrib (late 17th–late 20th Centuries)

  UNIVERSITAET ST. GALLEN · CH · €1,996,298

  What if cultural identity played a greater role than religion in shaping Muslim-Jewish relations? Maghrib-Bridges: The Endurance of Iberian Heritage in the Modern Maghrib (late 17th–late 20th Centuries), investigates this question by exploring how shared historical roots and cultural heritage connected Muslims and Jews in ways that transcended religious divisions. It focuses on the intertwined cultural history of Sephardic Jews and Andalusian Muslims in the Maghrib. By adopting a historical-anth

• Decoding the immuno-regulatory functions of the human bone marrow niche upon cancer cellular therapy

  LUNDS UNIVERSITET · SE · €2,000,000

  ImmunhOss proposes the personalized modelling of cellular immunotherapies towards improving their efficacy in leukemia context. Cellular immunotherapies hold great clinical promises after demonstrating spectacular success in lymphomas and multiple myeloma, through the pioneering Chimeric Antigen Receptor T cells (CAR-Tc) strategy. However, the outcome remains poor for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) which accounts for the majority and most lethal adult leukemia. Pre-clinical successes were not fol

• Sleep and Circadian Rhythms in Chronic Disease and Lifecourse Epidemiology

  UNIVERSITY OF BRISTOL · UK · €2,358,499

  Circadian rhythms are endogenous near-24 hour cycles that regulate most biological processes. When cycles are misaligned to the external world, this can cause sleep disorders and associated ill health. Deterioration in sleep quality is a prominent feature of ageing and poor sleep is characteristic of many chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, neurodegeneration and some cancers. Growing evidence suggests that sleep and circadian rhythm disruption (SCRD) is not only a conse

• Computational Assistants for Scientific Discovery

  EBERHARD KARLS UNIVERSITAET TUEBINGEN · DE · €1,998,803

  Societal challenges like climate change, healthcare, and food security demand rapid scientific and technological innovation. Recently, AI demonstrated its transformative potential for biology, chemistry, and materials science. However, while AI already excels in domain-specific tasks, its role as a general-purpose research assistant remains underexplored, even though this use case could fundamentally enhance scientific discovery as a whole. This proposal aims at developing human-centric AI assis

• A predictive model of diversification and convergence of colour patterns in East African cichlid fishes

  THE CHANCELLOR MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE · UK · €2,533,498

  How does morphological innovation arise and evolve to create the vast diversity of forms in the natural world? This is a fundamental topic in evolutionary biology, and yet long-standing questions remain, particularly regarding (1) the genomic and developmental mechanisms underlying trait evolution, and (2) how these mechanisms shape trait evolutionary trajectories. To solve these problems, our research uses the dramatic morphological diversity of cichlid fishes to study egg-spots – a sexually se